Learning about Justin Hammer's escape
by AnnieJames14
Summary: Justin Hammer escapes prison and Tony has just learned that his father survived the plane crash from when he was a child.
1. Chapter 1

Nothings been the same since New York. Everything has changed. I can't sleep, when I do, I have nightmares. The only thing thing that keeps me sane is Pepper. Oh gosh, Pepper; honestly, I don't know where I'd be without her. "Tony!" I heard come down the stairs; it was Pepper, of course. I quickly close what I had open. She didn't sound angry which was a relief to me, possibly to some others as well.

She steps toward me, "We need to talk." She says.

I take a minute to drink the rest of my coffee, "Um, okay. You talk...and I'll consider listening." I reply getting up from my seat to take care of some designs I had made for an upgrade to the Iron Man suit.

"Tony," Pepper says soothingly. "This is important. It's about your father." She adds.

I freeze facing my design. My mind quickly races through images of my father. "What about him?" I ask her.

"He's alive, Tony," Pepper says with a slight frown that reflects in a screen in front of me. "He's in the hospital; they've worked him up to good health." She adds with somewhat of a cheery attitude. I didn't see how he could have survived all these years. Especially since that night of the plane crash. I thought I was the only survivor of that crash. "Which hospital?" I ask hesitantly.

"St. Marks." She said before answering her phone that had been ringing for almost two minutes.

"St. Marks," I mutter. "JARVIS."

"Yes sir?" Asked Jarvis.

"Get me a video feed from St. Marks hospital." I tell him.

"Yes sir." Jarvis replies.

I hear Pepper hang up; I look to the screen beside me that shows my father lying in a hospital bed. I feel Peppers arms wrap around me lovingly. "You should go see him." She suggests. "I am seeing him, just virtually." I reply lost in the screen.

"Tony, he's your father. You should go to the hospital and see him." She says.

"No, I'll stay here." I say frowning slightly.

Pepper hugged me and kissed my cheek, "Are you sure?" She asks.

I nod slowly, "Yeah, I'm sure." I say.

She pulled away from me, I turned around to face her directly. "Okay, so-" Pepper began before being interrupted by Jarvis.

"Excuse me sir, pardon my interruption, by Mr. Rhodes is here." Jarvis said.

"Rhodey? Send him down." I ask myself. I look to Pepper, "What's he doing here?" I ask Pepper quietly.

Pepper shrugged and leaned against the desk, I look at the door seeing Rhodey enter the pass-code for the door, I hear the code access alarm beep as Rhodey walks in.

"Tony, I need to talk to you about something." He said before looking at Pepper, "Alone if you don't mind. Ms. Potts." He adds.

Pepper frowns, "What's this about?" She asks.

"It's nothing to serious. I just need to speak with Tony about the matter." Rhodey replies.

"Then it shouldn't be a problem if I knew." Pepper said crossing her arms looking worried.

I nodded to Pepper, "Pep, go. I'll be up in a few minutes." I tell her.

She nodded with a sigh, grabbed a few files she had come down with and walked back up stairs. Rhodey looked at me and smirked slightly.

"What?" I asked.

"You and Pepper...?" He says.

"Is this what you wanted to talk about?" I ask raising an eyebrow.

"No, no." He replied shaking his head. "Remember Justin Hammer?" He asks.

"The one that teamed up with the psycho to try and ruin my company? How could I forget?" I reply walking over to the bar counter.

"Yeah, well, he escaped prison last night."

I freeze before I started to pour some Rum into a small glass, I take a small sip and approach Rhodey.

"Escaped. How the hell did he escape?"

"He faked an injury." Rhodey said with a sigh.

I set the glass down on my desk and fall into the chair, "Any idea where he is now?" I ask looking up at him curiously.

He shakes his head, "No. But we're concerned that he might come for you." He says.

I sigh, "Thanks for comin' to tell me, buddy."

"I'm going to have a few guys patrolling your house until we know he's not coming for you or Pepper. Until then, be careful."

"Careful is my middle name." I joked.

"Uh-huh, right. Look, just...try not to do anything stupid." He said.

"I make no promises." I say quickly.

Rhodey shakes his head and walks to the door, we walk up stairs, Pepper walks to me frowning.

"Is everything okay?" She asks.

"Everything's fine." I say with a positive tone.

Because, everything IS going to be okay. Hammer isn't taking a step into this house, not while I'm still breathing. I watch Rhodey slip his hat out from under his forearm and put it on, he makes his way to the door and looks back at me.

"Thank you for your time, Tony. Take care of yourself." He said opening the door.

Rhodey steps out and shuts the door, Pepper turns her back to the door and looks up at me almost glaring.

"Is everything okay?" She asks.

"Yeah, everything's fine."

"Are you sure?" She asks almost exactly after I answer her.

"Yes, I'm sure."


	2. Chapter 2

It's been a day since I've been notified that my father survived the plane crash; and since Rhodey told me about Justin's escape. Which I've had luck of keeping from Pepper. I keep the T.V off during the night and day just in case the news came on and started talking about his escape. I felt somewhat guilty for keeping something like this away from Pepper, but I didn't need her to worry. Course, when does she ever NOT worry? I still felt I should keep it from her a bit longer, seeing she'd find out sooner or later. I decided, later would be my best option. Just then, I saw Pepper come down the stairs in a light blue buttoned T-Shirt that came down to her hips, she looked a bit energized as she walked into the kitchen to make two cups of coffee.

"Someone seems as if they slept well...?" I said greeting a good morning start.

"I did sleep well," She said walking into the living to sit next to me on the couch. "What about you? You look like you haven't slept at all." She adds.

"That's because I didn't."

"Why not?"

I knew I had to make something up, I couldn't tell her the REAL reason why, she'd worry about me more than she seemed to be already. "I was up making adjustments to the suit. After New York, I don't know. Sometime about it seems off." I say picking up a tablet on the table looking through the options I have to work with on the suit. Obviously it needs upgrades, especially if I run into Justin Hammer again. Pepper didn't look convinced but, at my guess, she let is pass. She stood and walked back to the kitchen, I lean back and look over my shoulder as she's walking into the kitchen, turn back to the tablet with a slight smirk on my face.

_Meanwhile..._

Justin Hammer, the former escapee from a LA. prison, sits in a small room in a hideout, watching the news. He silently scoffs seeing Tony Stark's city celebration, after returning from New York. He rewinds it and pauses it on Tony's face. Glaring he quickly turns off the T.V.

"Melody!" Justin called with a firm tone.

A young, thirteen year old girl rushes down the steps of the small hideout with fear striking her eyes, she stops in front of him, head down terrified of him.

"Yes, Mr. Hammer?" She asks.

After being in prison for two years, Hammer changed from a tight, loyal business man to a firm, violent, and rage-full man. He stood above her like a hawk looking down at pray from a high perch. Justin lays a soothing hand on her shoulder which causes her to flinch just a bit, he made her look up. He looked at her with his snake-like eyes, "I need you to go into Mr. Stark's house and find his suits," He takes a camera from his small, junked side table and gives it to her. "Get as close as you possibly can and take pictures of each suit." He grinned. Melody didn't want to disappoint him, not again. She nodded quickly but before she could leave the room and gave her one more thing with a specific set of instructions; nodding she rushed out of the hideout taking what Hammer gave her.

_Back at the Stark house..._

__"Have you checked on you dad, lately?" Pepper calls from up stairs.

"As a matter of fact, I haven't."

For a reason, actually. That jerk-off spent fifteen years his life searching for something-or rather a someone-that didn't turn up until just recently. And the night before his big search, he and my mother...yeah, I think some people know, I try not to remind myself. Then he disappeared until my mother showed up at HIS doorstep saying that I was his son.

"Tony. He's your father." Pepper called again.

Her heels the she had just slipped on came closer until they stopped behind me, I turned around with a slight smirk. She slipped her arms around my neck as she smiled.

"I need you to come with me, Tony." She said tilting her head just slightly to the right.

"Where?"

"The Stark Building. There's some questions the construction workers are needing to ask you."

I nod, buying into her game. Once we're in the car, Pepper leaned up to Happy's ear and whispered something I couldn't quite catch. Happy nodded slightly and left the drive way. I looked to Pepper curiously all she did was smile. Fifteen minutes later, the car pulls in front of St. Marks hospital. _Of course._ I think sarcastically.

"You're learning quickly." I say sarcastically to Pepper

She huffed happily with a smile and got out of the car as Happy opened the door for her. I stepped out and went inside with Pepper.

_Meanwhile: at the Stark's residence..._

__Melody had waited until Tony and Pepper had left the house to slip inside by breaking the window, which made Jarvis quickly sound off the alarm. Scared and in a hurry, Melody rushed around the house looking for what Hammer told her to find, running down the stairs she finds what she's looking for. Tony's suits. She snaps a few pictures of each suit, she got a picture of the security system just in case Hammer wanted that as well. She rushed back up the stairs and ran for the door, then she remembered the clay-like box. She sets on the kitchen counter like Hammer told her too, opens it and presses a little bright red button that makes it count down stating from 60:00. She quickly runs out and goes back to give Hammer what he wanted.

**I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I loved writing it. :) **


	3. Chapter 3

_Back at the hospital..._

Pepper and I followed a nurse that led us to my fathers room, where he sits in his bed watching the Television He seems to recall what happened to him that night, because, the nurse edged on about us not asking him about it after having some difficulties with his behavior I stand by the door way as Pepper sits in a chair next to his bed. "Look at this! Can you believe this!?" He exclaims I look to the screen, he's watching the news. My heart starts to race as it shows a picture of Justin Hammer, I quickly race over to the bed remote and turn off the T.V. Pepper doesn't intend on asking a question, course, I know I'm in for a ton later. "Who are you people?" He asks with a slight grin.

Pepper extended her hand to him, "Pepper, Pepper Potts."

He nodded and shook her hand, "Pleasure, Ms. Potts." He says grinning a bit more. He looks over at me curiously, "And you, sir?"

I'm silent for what seems like three minutes, I blink and look at him. "Tony," I pause, not knowing if I should give him my last name. I decide to give it a try, "Tony Stark." I add. His eyes focused on mine, he looked shocked. He swallows.

"S-Stark?" He stutters.

I nod slowly, "Yeah." I huffed. I did and didn't want to talk to my father. Course, it's been more then ten years since we've even seen each other. He started to smile, Pepper smiled as he did.

"You're Emily's son...?"

"Yes."

He chuckled, "You look just like her."

"Funny. She said I looked like you."

He frowned, " 'Said'? She's dead?"

Mentally, I'm hitting myself, I didn't want to tell him that my mother had died. Frowning, I nod slowly. I look at Pepper who sighs silently.

"When?" He asks sadly looking away from me now.

"Three years ago."

"And...I wasn't there." He mutters.

I shake my head, deciding I can't take talking to him any longer. I walk out of the room, Pepper follows. "Good to meet you, Ms. Potts." He says to Pepper who's following me out of the room. I go into the hall and taps my chin. Pepper takes my hand and goes around the corner of the hall.

"Is everything okay?" Pepper asks.

Suddenly, I was furious with my father, "No! Everything is NOT okay," I say through my teeth "HE left for fifteen years of my life, Pepper. My mother had to take me to HIS door step and tell him that I was his son." I rub my chin lightly with a sigh, "Do you know what we did for 'Fun'?" Pepper shook her head frowning, "He took me on his little 'Captain America' search."

"Captain America? Isn't he working with the Avengers...?" She asks.

I nod. I go to the elevators and go down to the car, as does Pepper. We both get into the car and ask Happy to take us back to the house.

_Back at the Stark house..._

We pull up to the house to see a few police cars sitting in the drive way with their lights on, I see a glass window broken. I quickly rush out of the car and up to Rhodey who is talking to the police.

"Rhodey," I call walking to him. "Rhodey, what's going on?"

"Someone broke into your house, nothing is stolen. Nothing out of the ordinary so far."

"Any idea who it was?"

"We have a pretty good guess," He says looking at as if it were obvious. "Come inside, I have to show you something."

I nod, Rhodey takes me down where I keep my suits, enters the code and then goes over to my desk where the video feed from the house after we left shows. "Watch this." He clicks the play button on the video feed, I watch a small, thirteen year old girl break a window and run inside the house. I'm surprised. Rhodey rewinds it and plays it again this time pausing it on the young girls face.

"Hammer?"

Rhodey shook his head, "I can't be for sure. But I am sure of a few things, her name is Melody Hudson. Strait A student in school. Went missing about a month ago."

"What mindless moron would kidnap a thirteen year old girl?"

"Do you have any enemies?"

I give him an obvious look. He hit his head with his hand, "I meant one that's not wanting to actually kill you, Tony!"

"Mmmm...someone that's NOT wanting to kill me, none. Someone that want's to steal my work and tear my company to ruins? Tons."

"Well, that narrow's it down."

"Isn't there some kind of machine that can track this girl down or something?"

"Unlike you, Tony. We don't have machine's to do everything." He sighed quietly.

"Is that a yes?"

"Okay, yes. We can track her. But, it might take awhile."

"How long is awhile?"

"Normally two-to-four days." He said leaning back into the chair.

"Days?"

He nodded as I sighed, "Keep me updated." I say walking to the code locked door. "Don't I always..?" He says following behind me, I open the door to find the police have gone, Pepper sits on the couch looking a bit exhausted. I sighed and walked to the kitchen, Rhodey walked to Pepper and started asking questions like "Do you know anybody that would want to harm Tony, that I haven't already come across as a deadly person." and, "Do you think you know anything about this girl Melody Hudson." All answers were the same from her. "No." I stand in the kitchen leaning against the counters. After Rhodey is finished, he stands and walks to the door slipping his navy blue hat onto his head again, "Take care." He said walking out. I go over to Pepper and sit next to her.


End file.
